Team Rocket/Slayers
by CoriWhoWritesStuff
Summary: I'm finally putting my strange Team Rocket/Slayers crossover here. Kind of an odd pairing, but oh well.. :P I think it's pretty easy to understand even if you've only seen Pokemon. Please review if you'd like to see more.
1. Help!

Team Rocket/Slayers: Episode 1 - Help! 

There are tales of brave warriors and accomplished Summoners, traveling the world to perform good deeds, filling the hearts of those they help with joy and gratitude. Many a book has been filled with such stories, and they likewise serve to inspire and enlighten the human heart. 

But don't worry. This isn't one of those stories. 

A young girl walked down the path leading out of a small town, her long red ponytail blowing in the breeze as she hummed happily. The full money pouch at her waist was certainly part of the reason she was so happy; it clinked and jingled in a most satisfying way. She suspected that the townsfolk wouldn't be quite as satisfied upon finding money missing from their own pockets. Not that she would let it bother her, not on this deliciously sunny day, with the perfect breeze and the forest to either side of the path looking so verdant. 

Besides, thieves weren't supposed to be bothered by things like that. 

"I certainly don't look the thief, do I?" she mused aloud as she walked. The outrageous shoulder guards, the tights covering her slim legs, the boots and flowing cape... "I look more like a traveling Summoner, off to do good deeds," she laughed. "But... it doesn't hurt that I really _am_ a Summoner. Besides, no one would ever expect me to rob them anyway, me being so beautiful and downright desirable." She allowed herself to indulge in more laughter, letting the feeling of giddiness carry her away. 

"Well, lookee here, boys... A girl all alone, talkin' to herself. Hell, she looks like she's a bit lonely. What do you say we keep her and that big purse of hers company, eh?" 

Her laughter stopped abruptly and she opened her eyes to coldly regard the men now blocking her path. Scruffy-looking third-rate bandits, from the looks of them. "What a way to spoil my mood," she muttered before continuing more loudly, "Alright then, which one of you wants hurt first?" 

"Oooh guys..." the leader continued, pushing greasy strands of hair away from his face with equally greasy fingers. "We got ourselves a real prize. She thinks she's a Summoner or somethin'!" 

"No really... what circus are you in?" another man gibed, causing the others to burst out laughing as though he had just made the greatest joke in the world. 

"I wouldn't laugh so hard if I were you," she replied calmly, reaching into another bulging pouch hidden inside her cape. She held the red-and-white Monster Orb she had taken from it for a moment before beginning to bounce it in her hand unconcernedly. 

"Oh really?" the leader said in mock curiosity. "So if you're so special, who are you?" 

The girl continued to bounce the Orb in the palm of her hand, managing to look utterly bored. "Jessie." 

"Je... Jessie? You mean like... Jessie... _Inverse_? That little... Summoner... thief? The one who... who... gives little kids nightmares and eats grown men for breakfast?" 

"Where the hell did you hear _that_?" Jessie screamed, eyes flashing blue fire. 

"Oh... heheh... it, uhh... doesn't really matter now, we gotta be leaving now anyway, sorry to bother you, Miss Inverse..." the leader stuttered, making all kinds of odd faces as he backed away slowly. Then all three of them turned tail and ran as though pursued by a swarm of killer Beedrill. 

"Oh no you don't... You don't get off so easily after what you said about me," Jessie muttered. Tossing the Orb high overhead, she yelled, "Come forth, Ninetales!" 

With a flash of light, the orb disappeared, a cloud of mist forming into the shape of the fox-like Monster, it's long tails flowing gracefully as it floated above Jessie. It regarded it's mistress with calm, glowing eyes as it awaited her command. 

"Alright Ninetails..." Jessie began, pointing a finger in the direction of the fleeing bandits. "Firespin those jerks!" The Monster obediently opened it's mouth wide, emitting a long twisting funnel of fire that raced after the men's retreating forms. They momentarily fell down into a sizzling heap before jumping back up and running twice as fast. Not to mention screaming twice as loud. 

"That takes care of that! Nice job, Ninetails, now, return!" After the Monster appeared to dissolve back into mist, the Orb reappeared and settled gently into Jessie's hand. "I guess I'll have to walk through the forest anyway. Stupid third-rate bandits attacking people on the road," she grumbled, slipping the Orb back in it's place while she stepped off the path and angrily barged her way through the first of the trees. And nearly fell into a hole. 

Pivoting on her heel, she spun to land on the ground a few feet away. "Damn it! Who the hell is digging holes and trying to ruin my day even more!" she screamed in frustration. 

"Not that I'm trying to ruin your day... but could you help me out of here?" 

Jessie sat up straight and blinked at the voice. It sounded not too distant, and echoed slightly as though... it came from a hole. She crept over on hands and knees to peek down cautiously. Sure enough, there was a boy at the bottom of the hole, looking up at her as curiously as she looked down. From his clothes, covered with various pieces of armor, he appeared to be a swordsman. Of course, the sword laying on the ground beside him fit the image, too. Jessie squinted at him. The only thing wrong was that he wasn't filled out enough. Everyone knows that swordsmen are supposed to be muscular and athletic-looking. And his longish hair, held away from his face only slightly by a strip of black cloth tied around his forehead, seemed to vary between blue and purple in the strangest way. 

"What's wrong with your hair? It keeps changing colors." 

The boy heaved a tired sigh. "That's wonderful, but can you _please_ get me out of here? I've been down here half the day and I'm really feeling cramped!" 

Jessie shook her head. A whining swordsman? No... Surely this was just a boy playing hero games. "First of all, how did you get down there?" 

"Oh... well, you see... I fell in." 

"Who dug this hole? Do you know?" 

"Umm... I did. It was supposed to be a Monster trap," the boy replied rather sheepishly. 

"You fell down your own trap... Okay, I really think you aren't worth the time to save now," Jessie said, standing up and brushing dirt from her knees. 

"No, no, wait! Please!" The urgency in his voice made her turn back for a second. "If you help me, I can do something for you!" 

"Do something for me..." Jessie repeated, staring into his hopeful green eyes. Actually, he wouldn't look half bad if he wasn't covered with dirt, most likely from trying to climb out himself. If you were the kind of girl who fell for delicate facial features, that is. "Like what?" 

"I'm a swordsman!" he exclaimed, grabbing up the sword beside him as if it proved everything. "I can protect you from danger!" 

"Really..." Jessie replied dryly. "Who do you work for?" 

"I'm free lance." 

"For how long?" 

"Since last week." 

Jessie rubbed her nose where she had hit it upon falling flat on her face. "That's it! No way! You're on your own, pal!" 

"No! I can do other things too!" he whined in reply. "Please don't leave me yet!" 

"Why do I bother," Jessie growled. "Okay, what else?" 

"I can... well, I... that is... I can..." Jessie started to walk away, disgusted. 

"I know!! I can cook, if it means anything to you!" 

She sprinted back in the space of a heartbeat. "Why didn't you _say_ so?" she demanded. "C'mon, grab my hand and I'll pull you up." 

After a lot of heaving and scrambling, Jessie managed to haul him out of the pit. He knelt at the edge for quite some time, all but kissing the ground as he panted heavily like he'd done all the work himself. 

"I'm free! This is so great! Ahh... the ground... the sky..." 

Jessie nudged him with the toe of her boot. "You could see all that from where you were." 

"But it's not the same! Now I can breathe fresh air... and see in all directions around me for at least ten feet! Oh, freedom!" he cried, jumping up and clasping his hands together. 

"You were only down there half a day," Jessie muttered. She vaguely wondered whether someone hadn't just dumped him in the hole in an effort to get rid of a babbling lunatic. 

"Oh, and thank you! How could I forget," he was saying now. At first, it seemed he was about to hug her, but after he got a good look at Jessie's contorted face, he merely clasped her hand to shake it. She stared at him a moment, not having to look up far since he was only about two inches taller, reading the sincerity of his gratitude in his eyes. Somehow she felt she could count on this guy not to rob her. And if he ever tried anything, she was sure she could take him on just fine. More than just fine, as a matter of fact. 

"I guess you'd want to camp for the night, right? I know the perfect place, and I can cook you something then," he continued, not seeming to read anything from her silence. Still holding her hand, he started to lead her through the trees, finally letting her go once he noted her expression. Then he just tried to look dignified, resting a hand on his sword hilt and staring down every leaf that so much as twitched as though it was about to attack. 

Jessie smiled, a bare curving of her lips. At least she hadn't rescued a boring person. Just one whose intelligence was questionable. "So what's your name?" she found herself asking rather abruptly. He jerked his attention back to her. 

"Sorry... it's James." 

"James... got a last name?" 

"I wish I didn't," was what she thought she heard him mutter before saying more clearly, "Ehh... it doesn't matter _that_ much, does it?" 

"Guess not. But since I don't have any qualms about my own name... It's Jessie. Jessie _Inverse_," she emphasized, waiting for the shocked reaction. 

"That's a nice name. Hey, are you alright? Did you trip over something?" 

Jessie brushed away the hand he offered and stood up, spitting dirt. "No, I'm just fine." So he _didn't_ recognize her name. Maybe it was for the better, though. That way he wouldn't try to turn her in for some reward. 

"Maybe you have the same problem I do..." James was saying slowly. 

"Problem?" 

"Oh... see..." he continued, somewhat reluctantly. "When I left home, I wanted to become a really great swordsman. I had already trained and everything, but I wanted to be a member of the Swordsmen's Guild, so I could get a job as a bodyguard or something. I passed the Swordsmanship Test well enough, but..." 

"But?" 

"Well, I sort of failed a couple of the other tests. It seems... I can handle myself just fine when it comes to being in combat, but any other time, I have the tendency to be... how did they put i-- Ouch, my foot!" 

Jessie watched in amusement as he hopped up and down from stubbing his toe on a rock. "Clumsy?" 

"Yeah, I... guess that's it," he sighed. As they continued through the forest, Jessie watched James from the corner of her eyes, feeling just the tiniest bit of pity for him. He didn't seem like such a bad guy, except for the obvious-- 

A scream rent the air from somewhere ahead, followed by another, and yet another. The newly acquainted pair froze in their tracks to stare at each other, open-mouthed. 

"Sounds like trouble," James said first, setting a determined look on his face and turning back to continue forward. 

"Wait a minute! You don't know what's wrong! You're just going to barge right into the middle of God knows what and--" 

"Well, screaming usually means some kind of trouble," James replied with a shrug. "I'm just a free lance swordsman... I can't be too picky about what jobs I take. Assuming they pay me for helping out," he concluded with a wry smile. Then he was gone, running as fast as he could and miraculously not tripping. 

Despite her better judgement, Jessie found herself running after him. Curiosity about his sword abilities might have been part of the reason she followed. Mostly she just wanted to make sure he didn't die before she got her food. 

The trees began to thin out ahead, ending before a large clearing where roughly ten plainly constructed wooden houses could be seen. A small settlement, only just starting out. Jessie kept hidden behind a tree, checking out the situation before venturing in further. Apparently there _was_ trouble, at least of some sort. Frenzied people were fleeing their houses and running in every direction into the forest. And what they were running _from_... Jessie had to stare. 

What appeared to be a several sizes too large Charizard was wandering amongst the houses. But that wasn't the wierd thing. The wierd thing was that it had two heads. Upon closer inspection, Jessie noticed that the right head had a fairly mean expression, almost seeming mocking, if she hadn't known any better. The other head just looked plain idiotic. The "mean" head was blasting fire at anything and everything in sight while the stupid one just puffed out great clouds of smoke. 

There are a lot of strange things in the world, Jessie already knew that much to be true. But this ranked somewhere up there in the _really_ strange. 

Jessie's hand shot out to grab a fleeing villager's arm. It was a young girl, wide-eyed and fearful in a long blue dress. 

"What are you doing? Can't you see it? I have to run! Run!" 

"Okay, alright, just calm down! How did this happen? I mean... Where did it come fro--" 

"It's the horrible beast of legend!" the girl shrieked, desperately trying to wrench her arm out of Jessie's grasp. "The legends say it will come in the time of heat, to destroy and plunder! The horrible two-headed beast!" 

"Yeah, I get the idea! But... what's _wrong_ with that Charizard?" 

"The horrible beast.." the girl continued, dropping her voice to a whisper, "It's two heads represent sarcasm and lunacy." Then she screamed, "The world is not safe! Run!" Finally slipping loose, the girl plunged headlong into the forest, shrieking loudly. Jessie lifted an eyebrow. 

"Great... This is just great. Who the hell writes these stupid legends, anyway?" Turning to look for the Monster again, her jaw nearly dropped to the earth when she saw what was happening now. 

There was James, of course, helping out just like he had said he would. Except he didn't have his sword drawn yet, and he had somehow managed to climb to the roof of one of the only houses still intact. With his arms folded and his legs spread out wide, he appeared to be about to give a dramatic speech, if anything. 

"What the hell are you _doing_?" Jessie screamed at him. "Are you trying to kill yourself?" He didn't seem to notice. 

"Alright, you hideous Monster," he announced to the beast, which had actually stopped to eye him up and down. "Attacking an innocent village this way is inexcusable! The homes destroyed, livliehoods ruined, futures lost... AAHHH! It just makes my blood boil! So that is why" - here he drew his sword with a flourish - "I will kill you now!" He leaped off the roof with a surprisingly agile gracefulness, landing effortlessly in front of the Monster and beginning to attack while dodging blasts of flame. 

Jessie found herself gaping again. He really wasn't all that bad, much better than she had expected. She stepped closer to see better and noticed that no matter how skilled he was, the sword wasn't having any great effect. James must have realized it too, because he was standing now out of the Monster's range, bending down slightly and breathing hard. 

"I see... that... you are tougher... than I thought. I didn't... want to have to... use this... but..." With a final deep breath, he took his attention away from the monster and looked at his sword instead. He ran his fingers lightly over something Jessie couldn't see on the blade, near the hilt. His eyes, closed, and the sword began to glow a faint green. Jessie's breath caught in her throat. Suppose that sword was... 

As James slashed the sword out in a diagonal line in the Monster's direction, tiny green vines seemed to burst from nowhere, rapidly growing and expanding to wrap the Monster up tightly all the way up to it's necks. The monster struggled and roared (at least, the right head did), finally loosing more blasts of flame from it's open mouth to burn the vines away. With another triumphant roar, it headed toward James, now clearly more angry than before and more than ready to work off that rage on the most convenient target. 

James wasted no time in touching the sword's blade again, and this time as he swept the sword, now glowing red, in large arcs toward the Monster, balls of fire materialized out of a clear blue sky to hurl themselves at his attacker. However, the Monster was easily able to deflect the fireballs with those of it's own. Finally, James just let his sword arm fall to his side as he stared with huge eyes at the Monster, then wheeled around abruptly, sheathed his sword, and ran straight for Jessie. 

"Help me! You have to help me!" he wailed, ducking behind her and under her cape. "Nothing I do works!" 

"Oh, so I have to rescue you _again_?" Jessie sighed, keeping a mindful eye on the Monster's progress in their direction. "And what do you think _I_ can do?" 

"I thought you were a Summoner! You've got this cool cape and everything! So summon up something to defeat this thing!" 

"And what do I get for helping you _again_?" 

"You... you can have half of the reward!" 

"Half...?" 

"Alright, 75 percent! Just do something now, it's almost here!" 

"I guess that's enough. I just hope, for your sake, that there will _be_ a reward," Jessie muttered. Luckily, James was huddled beneath the corner of her cape opposite her pouch containing the Orbs, so she easily reached in to pluck out the two she wanted. Rolling them around in her palm for a moment, she nodded as the Monster got within a ten foot range. She flung the Orbs straight overhead, red-and-white blurs spinning up into the sky's blueness. 

"Come forth, Blastoise! Raichu!" Jessie grinned wickedly as the two Monsters she had called up floated above her, ready to obey her every whim. The feeling of power was almost overwhelming. 

"Hydro Pump! Thundershock!" The dangerous combination of water and lightning soon had the two-headed Monster laying wet and sizzling on the ground. "Yeah! That's right! That's what happens when you mess with Jessie Inverse!" Jessie yelled, raising a fist into the air. She quickly called her own Monsters back into their Orbs. "James... you can come out now. Besides, you're wrinkling my cape." 

"Oh... sorry." He extracted himself from her cape only to fling his arms around her waist. "Thank you!" 

A sharp elbow to the head fixed that. He stepped back quickly, rubbing his head as she took a threatening step closer. "Rule one... no touching," she said with a glare. "Do that again and it'll be more than my elbow that hits your head." 

"Sorry, sorry... I was just trying to say thank you." 

"Yeah, well, you'll be thanking me when you hand over my share of the money. Now, about that sword of yours, I--" 

"What in the hell did you just do?!" a scratchy voice yelled. The pair turned to see a short old man with long white hair, looking more dusty and disheveled than anything else, running towards them. 

"And who are you supposed to be?" Jessie asked. 

"I'm this village's mayor! And I _demand_ to know what you've done to our Monster!" 

"Your... Monster? So this freak of nature _belongs_ to you? Well don't worry, it isn't dead, and now you can probably capture it in an Orb and--" 

"Capture it? Why would I want to capture it!? This is a beast of legend! Our prophecies read that once a year, in the time of great heat, a hideous and terrifying monstrosity will come from the forest to burn down our village! Every year, we rebuild, but we are destined to repeat the same catastrophe every year! Oh, isn't fate magnificent?" the old man cried, his hands clasped together and stars shining in his eyes. 

"This is great... A village of idiots," Jessie muttered. "So let me guess... Now you're all angry because we played with your fate, and you'll drive us out in an angry, screaming mob?" 

"Close enough," the old man shrugged. Villagers were indeed streaming out from the forest, evil intent on their faces. 

James laughed nervously. "So... I guess that means no... reward..." he asked Jessie as his fingers twitched convulsively toward her cape again. 

"You're right. What it means is you'd better run fast and hope you don't trip!" she yelled, shoving him in a relatively clear direction and taking off after him. They managed to escape alright, if one didn't count the rocks, the dirt clods, or the occasional plow that somehow managed to hit them on the way. 

***** 

"Mmmm! I didn't know Jigglypuff could be so delicious! Mmm... mm... MMMmmm...." 

"Oh yeah, all you need is the right seasoning. Those plants over there are the best when it comes to--" 

"Yeah, yeah, quit talking about it already! You're ruining my concentration!" 

"How much concentration do you _need_ to eat?" 

"It takes a lot more than you'd think!" 

"Yeah... I don't know, but I'd say you probably have the concentration of an overgrown Snorlax to be able to stuff your face like that." 

"WHAT?" 

"Umm... I said that you're so graceful and feminine that it hardly seems you ate much at all." 

"Well, you got that right." Jessie sat back and sighed her satisfaction at having a full stomach at last. The camp James had brought her to actually _had_ proven to be perfect, near water and with plenty of space for a fire. James sat on the other side of the fire, polishing off the rest of his own food. Leaning forward, she caught sight of his sword laying beside him, and chose that moment to pounce on it. 

"Hey, that's mine!" James yelled, making a desperate grab for it. 

"Oh calm down. I'll give it back." Jessie unsheathed the sword to look it over. It appeared to be an ordinary sword at first glance, but the end of the hilt was shaped and colored like a Monster Orb. Closely inspecting the blade revealed two tiny etched symbols: small, dancing flames represeting fire magic, and a green leaf representing plant magic. "Yes... This is a Summon Sword, alright," she announced solemnly. 

"I could've _told_ you that! Now give it back! Please? Come on!" 

"Fine! Geez, what's your problem anyway?" Jessie grumbled, tossing it back to him and reseating herself. 

"It's been in my family forever, and... Well, it's mine," James concluded, cradling it closely in his arms like a baby. 

"I wondered why you only used two types of magic... Those are the worst two you could've picked against that Monster! Why aren't there any other types in the sword, if it's been in your family so long?" 

"Well... I... I can't explain it. I tried to get some water magic once... But I tripped, and the Squirtle got away," he sighed. 

"By the way... what was with that... speech?" 

"Oh that! I got the highest score in the Swordsmen's Guild history on my Heroic Speech Test! The competition was tough, but I soared to the top and became the--" 

"Just sit down and shut up. This isn't the time for a speech." 

"Sorry." 

Jessie studied him through the flickering flames with narrowed eyes. Exactly what was he keeping back about that sword, anyway... Then another thought occured to her. "And James... I hope you don't think that one meal is gonna pay me back for saving you - twice! - not to mention the nonexistent _reward_ I never got." 

"Yeah, I figured it wouldn't be," he sighed again. "So how many more meals do I have to fix for you? "A week's worth? Two?" 

"Oh... A year should cover it." 

James fell over, his legs twitching as he squeaked out something that kind of sounded like, "Ah... yuh... year?" 

"Or... You can just gimme your sword and we're instantly even!" Jessie beamed. That got him to hug his sword even tighter. 

"No! It's mine! Mine! I'll cook for you _ten_ years, but you can't have my sword!" 

Jessie sat back again and smiled. Oh yes, this was definitely shaping up to be some adventure. 

There. That wasn't enlightening in the least, now was it?


	2. The Mystery Freak

Team Rocket/Slayers: Episode 2 - The Mystery Freak 

"This is _all_ you have?" 

"What's _that_ supposed to mean? Like you have any more?" 

"True... Well, what are they, anyway?" 

Jessie gave James an exasperated roll of her eyes. "These are _Monster Orbs_," she replied mockingly. "They--" 

I know! I know what they are! I meant what's _in_ them!" 

Jessie sighed. They had been about to break camp for another day of walking, when all of a sudden, James had wanted to know what Monsters she had caught. After two weeks of walking, to who knows where, and _now_ he wanted to know about her Monsters. 

"Umm... Jessie? Are you going to tell me now or--" 

"Alright, alright!" she fumed, plopping down onto the ground in front of the six Monster Orbs she had spread in front of her. Little puffs of dust rose from the dry ground around her, then floated back down slowly. James knelt down across from her and waited expectantly. 

"Okay... These three are my favorites: Ninetails, Raichu, and Blastoise. They're probably the most powerful of the ones I've managed to catch. And then in the rest are an Arbok, a Lickitung, and an Ivysaur." She paused to shake her head ruefully. "It's too bad that wild Monsters are becoming more scarce... I mean, we haven't seen any in these last two weeks beyond the Jigglypuff you keep finding for us to eat. Figures... there's an abundance of what you _don't_ want." 

James actually seemed to be interested, leaning forward and nodding in an almost intelligent way. "How do you tell which one is which so well?" 

"Well, the Monster Orbs each have a different feel to them. It's hard to explain... But trust me, I can just tell when I pick one up." 

"Hmm..." James picked up two of the red-and-white spheres and carefully balanced them on his palms. "I don't feel a difference." 

"That's because you're not a Summoner," Jessie snapped, snatching the Orbs away from him and stuffing them along with the rest back into their pouch. Tying it back in place inside her cape, she stood up and demanded, "So, are we going now?" 

James stood up as well, stretching both arms behind his head. "Yeah, yeah. Are you in a bad mood today or what?" 

"_What_ was that?" 

"Ahaha... Is today just the most wonderful day or what?" 

"Not really. Not unless we find a town today," Jessie muttered, stalking off through the forest again. Well, walking through nothing but trees and eating nothing but Jigglypuff for two weeks straight would make _anyone_ cranky. To emphasize that thought to herself, she angrily kicked a rock. It sailed through the air to land several feet farther into the trees. 

"My turn," James grinned when they reached it again. He swung his boot at it, missed, and landed on the ground. Sitting bolt upright, he loudly exclaimed, "All rocks are out to get me!" 

"Yeah, it's a rock conspiracy," Jessie offered dryly as she pulled him up to continue walking. After that, he kept muttering about rocks and conspiracies for so long that Jessie was sure he would give a dramatic speech to the next rock they came across. 

Not that the past two weeks had been _totally_ awful. James was a good enough companion, and oddly enough, she sometimes found herself actually enjoying his presence. Not to mention the way he cooked. If only he wasn't so clutzy and didn't start rehearsing his silly "speeches" at any given moment and without any warning. But still, it was nice not to be alone, and-- 

That tugging on her cape was throwing her thoughts all out of order. "James, quit that! I'm trying to think here!" 

Now, where had she left off... Oh yeah, it was nice not to be alone, and-- 

"And don't tap my shoulder guard! Do you know how much _one_ of those things cost?" 

"Yes, but... See, there's a town ahead, and..." 

Jessie tuned his voice out and just stared straight ahead. Sure enough, a town spread out right before her and her eyes seemed to expand to take it all in. "A... a town! Actually, it's a city! Ohh, city life... Real places to eat, and inns with real beds, too! And I'll bet some real great entertainment! Ahhh... ooh..." 

"Jessie? Are you okay? Do you need help walking or something?" 

The red-haired Summoner got back up from her knees and shook her head violently. "I'm alright. Let's go!" She dashed off incredibly fast, cape billowng out behind her as she laughed joyously, leaving James somewhere behind. 

"Hey! Jessie, wait!" she heard him call once before she skidded to a stop within the first few buildings. What had caught her attention was a large poster that was tacked to the side of a building - the colors bright but the artistry leaving something to be desired. After sneering at the crude rendering of what vaguely looked like a Charizard fighting a Venusaur, she scanned down to read the lettering. Just then, James came half-running up, stopping beside her to lean against the wall. 

"Je... Jessie... why... run... so... fast?" he gasped out between ragged breaths. 

"Look at this..." she replied, gesturing at the poster. "They're having Monster battles in a stadium here... I've got to see this, hopefully all the have battling isn't a bunch of Caterpie," she continued eagerly, grabbing James' arm to tug him down the street. 

"But where is it?" he protested. "And why do we _have_ to see it?" 

"The poster said it's three buildings down from the north side of Center Square, and we _have_ to see it because I want to. I like to see Monsters in action. Plus, because... well, just because," Jessie concluded hastily. The reason she had been reluctant to say was that it would provide her plenty of opportunities to practice a few of her pickpocket techniques. And betting was fun too, provided she won. 

"So where's this square place?" 

"Well, if it's in the center, we'll come to it eventually if we just keep heading in," Jessie shrugged. She let go of James, only having recently realized that she was still pulling him by the arm, and started observing the details of the city. 

The houses were placed in neat, even rows, the sides painted white and the roofs painted red. In comparison, the shops tended to be clumped together haphazardly here and there amidst the houses; they all had red walls and white roofs. People crowded the streets thickly, making it necessary to dodge bodies, carts, and the occasional Ponyta-back rider. Jessie supposed that one could tell the citizens apart from visitors by the way that most of them wore red and white. 

The pair eventually found their way to a broad expanse of space covered with grass and a few trees, bordered in a square by flat pieces of wood painted red and white. "This must be it!" Jessie exclaimed happily. "Now, which way is north..." 

Knowing the exact direction proved unnecessary, since the stadium was tall enough to be seen over the buildings. As they drew closer, quite a crowd of people could be seen already inside the huge doors. 

"Hope we aren't too late," Jessie sighed as they passed through the doors into what seemed to be an space that was entirely devoted to food vendors and betting tables. 

"Aren't we going to make sure there's room for us to sit?" James asked when she hesitated momentarily. 

"Well... I think I'm going to place a couple of bets," Jessie replied. "How 'bout it, Jim? You a betting man?" 

He grinned at her. "Not really. But you go ahead." She nodded and headed for the nearest table, noting the way he shadowed her with an amused grin. One would think he was trying to be her bodyguard or something. Shaking her head, she read down the list of competitors for the day. 

Only two really caught her eye. The first was the starting battle - a Charizard against a Venusaur. The other was something strangely titled: Ryhorn vs. the Mystery Freak. Very interesting. 

"Okay pops, I'll bet 10 gold on the Charizard and 50 on the Freak. Double or nothing," she told the man behind the table, tossing him a small sack of coins she had taken from somewhere under her cape. 

"Heh. On the Freak? You sure?" 

"Yeah," was all Jessie said in reply as she walked off with James close besider her. 

"Jessie, are you sure... That much money..." 

"Hey, it sounds good to me. Whatever it is, it's gotta be a sure bet." 

"If you say so..." 

Finding seats took several minutes, as well as several swearing matches with people who didn't like being shoved. Jessie finally pulled a frazzled James into a seat next to her. "Jessie... Are you _always_ like that around people?" 

"Ehh... If they annoy me enough. Say... I wonder what's up with this city, anyway... It's so... red and white." 

"Really? I didn't notice." 

She scowled at him until she felt a light tap on her shoulder. They both turned to see a man with a huge mustache sitting behind them, the green vest he was wearing plainly marking him as being foreign to the city. 

"Excuse me young lady, but I thought I could answer your question for you. You see, the people of this city are very proud of their stadium, as it is the main tourist attraction here. As a symbol of their pride, most everything - from the color of the buildings to their clothes - is in red and white, which, of course, are the colors of a Monster Orb." 

"My... Thanks for the documentary," Jessie commented dryly. 

"Yes, thank you," James added, a touch more politely. "How many times have you visited here?" 

"Oh, I like to come as much as I can. They have good reason to be so proud of their stadium battles. In fact, I--" 

"That's all great, but isn't it going to start soon?" Jessie interrupted in exasperation. As if on cue, a cheer went up from the crowd as a man wearing - what else - red and white stepped out into the middle of the arena with a megaphone. 

"Ladies and Gentlemen! Welcome to today's stadium battles! The first match is between Charizard and Venusaur!" 

"Doesn't waste much time with words... I like it," Jessie commented as she rubbed her hands together eagerly. Then man ran back into the small door he had entered by; as soon as it closed, two much wider doors creaked slowly open and the crowd gasped audibly in anticipation. 

"Ahh! They're huge! This'll be sooo great!" Jessie cheered, jumping up and down and waving her arms. "That 20 is as good as mine!" 

"Jessie... Could you sit down? People are really starting to stare, and..." James suggested timidly. She frowned at him a moment before sitting. 

"Fine, fine," she muttered, leaning forward in her seat just the same. At this point, the two Monsters were circling one another warily, raising great clouds of dust whenever they stomped their feet, the sound of which was nearly drowned out by the roaring crowd. 

Abruptly, the Charizard loosed a blast of flame at the Venusaur, leaving it barely enough time to step out of the way. Then the Venusaur extended it's long, slender vines, whipping them around the fire Monster and attempting to get a firm grasp on it's legs or tail. But the Charizard shot up into the air, soaring around the ring and occasionally low over the crowd, which seemed to make people cheer louder, if anything. It began to circle the Venusaur, scorching it with fire from time to time as it desperately tried to look in all directions in order to see where it would be attacked next. 

Finally, the desperate plant Monster began to use it's powerful Solar Beam in an effort to slow it's opponent down, but the Charizard was just too quick. With a final spurt of flame, the Venusaur toppled to the ground to lay perfectly still. 

"And Charizard is our winner!" the man with the microphone announced from somewhere, setting the crowd off again. Jessie wasn't an exception. 

"Yeah! I won, I won! That was great!" she cheered enthusiastically. 

"You know... It seemed a little unfair to me," James commented slowly as he continued watching the Charizard, now settling down to the ground. Jessie turned to look at him and raised an amused eyebrow. 

"Don't think so hard, you might hurt yourself," she told him, reaching over to pat him on the head. He just blinked at her. But she knew he was right. That Charizard was obviously levels above the Venusaur. "Anyway, the next battle won't be until the last, so I thought I'd... well, go see if I can find someone I know." 

"I can go with you," James offered, already halfway standing. 

"No! Well... I'd rather go alone. I mean... Maybe you'd have more fun watching the battles," she suggested cautiously. 

"I guess so..." he finally replied, seating himself again. "If you promise to be careful..." 

She promised quite profusely to be just that, and quickly took her leave. She hadn't exactly _told_ him yet that she was a thief, and she wasn't even sure what he would do once he found out. Maybe give her a speech on the evils of theft. In any case, it wouldn't do to let him know what she was really going to do now. If only she could figure out why he was acting so protective... It couldn't really be because he thought he was her bodyguard... 

She put that thought out of her mind as she spent the next hour or so "collecting", as she liked to put it. Bumping into people and snatching their money pouches was the easiest way. Tripping people worked, too. However she did it, by the time the last battle rolled around, the inside of her cape was quite full, leaving her rather satisfied. 

She strolled self-confidently back to her seat, almost feeling a twinge of guilt when she remembered that she had just left James there by himself. He was just standing up as she arrived, a worried expression seemingly permanently painted on his face. "I was just coming to--" 

"It's alright! I'm here! Didn't find anyone though..." she added as an afterthought, pushing him back into his seat. "Just relax." But he didn't relax until she patted his arm gently in way of apology. Then he had the nerve to blush. She elbowed him hard in the ribs and felt infinitely better. 

"And now... what you've all been waiting for. Today our mysterious Monster will be battling a Ryhorn! Will it win...?" For some reason, the crowd dissolved into laughter. Jessie wondered why. One of the huge doors opened to reveal the Ryhorn, pawing at the ground and bellowing. The other door opened much more slowly. Jessie strained her eyes, as if making them bigger could help her see better. 

Out of the darkness, a small figure walked, holding up a hand... err... paw... to shield it's eyes from the sunlight. Then Jessie could see that it was a Meowth, but she wondered what kind of disease it had. It appeared to be covered with dark patches of something, yet from this distance, she couldn't quite make out what they were. 

"Yeah, the Freak!" 

"Let's see how bad it gets beat _this_ time!" 

"Maybe it's going for a record!" 

Jessie blinked a few times as she listened to the crowd's jeering. "Wha... so..." 

"Oh yes... the Freak," mustache man said from behind her. "It's a crowd favorite... even though it never wins." 

"Never... wins..." 

"Jessie? Are you... okay?" 

"It... never..." 

"Don't do anything rash, now... Jessie?" 

But Jessie wasn't listening to James. "Oh, I am so screwed!" she yelled, shooting to her feet. "I bet _50 gold_ on that damn thing!" she then screeched, pointing her finger straight at the Meowth. "And I am not going to lose!" 

By now, pretty much everyone was staring, even the Meowth and Ryhorn. "Jessie... come on, it's just 50... you... you..." 

Ignoring James completely again, she reached into her cape and pulled out a Monster Orb. "Come forth, Ninetails! Torch that Ryhorn!" Of course, Ninetails obeyed. Which caused the Ryhorn to burst into flame. Which, quite naturally, caused it to run into the side of the arena. Which happened to be made entirely of wood. 

Fearful shouts and screams filled the air as the fire spread; everyone had begun running, pushing and crowding toward the exit. Jessie grabbed her companion's arm again and pulled him with her over to the edge of the ring. 

"But Jessie! We have to get out of here!" he cried, looking rather panicky. 

"Come on with me," Jessie told him calmly, jumping down into the ring. "I think there may be a better way out. And I'm not leaving empty-handed." Not waiting to see if he followed, she ran over to the Meowth, which was still standing in the same spot, staring at the turmoil. She scooped it up on her way past to the door it had come in by, running as fast as she could while still holding the squirming Monster. She could see now that those dark patches were rock, but didn't waste time on pondering how that was possible. 

Once she reached the door, she stopped for a moment to catch her breath, seeing that James was indeed close behind her. "Good... We made it. Now we just slip out and--" 

"You can put me down now." 

Jessie dropped the Meowth in shock. "You... you just..." 

"No time for that now. Let's just get the hell out of here." 

Jessie and James shared a confused look, then stared at the talking Monster. "Guess it's right about that," Jessie said. They took off running after it, stopping only once when it paused to grab a small cloth bundle on the way before continuing on out into the city beyond. 

***** 

"So, you're _what_... again?" 

"I've told you _twice_! I was a Meowth, but a spell was cast on me, and as a result, I am now part Golem." 

"And you can talk." 

"That's right." 

"And what did you do to make someone _that_ angry?" 

"None of your business." 

Jessie sighed for what felt like the hundredth time that day. Not expecting a friendly reception from the citizens after the little "accident", Jessie, James, and their newfound Monster friend had wasted no time in hightailing it out of there. Now they were sitting in a small glade in the forest again while the Meowth explained everything. Jessie was listening intently, but she wasn't sure if James was paying any attention - he seemed preoccupied with polishing his sword. 

"Okay..." Jessie continued slowly. "So what's your name? Now that you know ours." 

"Meowth." 

"Meowth... that's terribly original." 

"I know," Meowth replied, irritably hitching it's cape further up on it's shoulders. What the bundle had turned out to be was that hooded cape - which Jessie thought looked utterly ridiculous on it - and a sack of Monster Orbs. The thing was actually a Summoner. Jessie shook her head. 

"Mind telling me what that whole stadium thing was about?" 

Meowth cleared it's throat, then began speaking in an imperious tone. "I was captured by men working for the stadium, and they decided I would make a great "act" for their stupid show. As everyone knows, those battles are rigged so that they are completely unfair. Since they took my Monster Orbs from me, I was unable to defend myself against the bigger, stronger Monsters they pitted me against. Forced every day to battle and fail, my name the object of derision, when all I really wish for is to find a way to change myself back to normal... Damn..." 

"Oh, cut the melodramatic crap. It may be worse than James' speeches." 

James blinked at Jessie. "What?" 

"In any case... What are you going to do now?" 

"I know!" James volunteered brightly. "It can stay with us!" 

"What? Are you out of your mind? We can't just pick up every stray that comes along and--" 

"But it's alone... Maybe it would _like_ to stay with us. Being alone isn't much fun..." 

"Maybe so, but I still say--" 

"Will you both shut up!" Meowth yelled sharply. Then it's eyes widened and it made a visible attempt to calm down, returning to that low and mysterious-sounding voice again. "I believe that I will accept your offer. But only until I find a way to change myself back to a normal Meowth again," it added with a haughty sniff. 

"Ahh! Great. Wonderful. Another mouth to feed. This is all your fault, James!" Jessie glared. 

"Umm... Who wants Jigglypuff?" 

Jessie flopped onto her back and stared up at the sky. No fancy food, no bed, losing money (no matter how much she had gained anyway)... Either this was just going to get better, or it was going to get worse. Most likely worse. Still, she repeated her earlier thought to herself: It was nice not to be alone.


	3. Predetermined Fate?

Notes: James' "secret" past comes back to haunt him in this episode... Sound scary? It ain't. I had "Holy Matrimony" in mind as I wrote this episode, but it didn't work out that way. Most noticeably missing are Jessiebelle and Growly. I may fit those elements into another episode.. or not. :p

Disclaimer: I don't own Team Rocket or the Slayers, but wouldn't I be happy if I did...  
  
**Episode 3 - Predetermined Fate?  
**  
There was a pain inside, a vast, yawning chasm filled with an emptiness that seemed to expand on it's own power. That emptiness twisted and surged spasmodically, a hole growing larger and larger... How much longer... How much longer until... "I'm so hungry I could die!"  
  
"Would you stop that whining, James? We're all hungry, but do you hear anyone else complaining about it?" Jessie snapped.  
  
"Sorry... Jessie..." James mumbled, shoulders slouching down pitifully. What she had said was true, but did she have to be so mean about it? The lavender- (or was is blue?) haired swordsman sighed loudly, continuing to drag himself along behind her. Meowth was slightly farther behind, as usual muttering to itself mysteriously. The path they were on was endless and heading to nowhere, or so it seemed. And no food since yesterday... His stomach growled insistently, but he tried to put it out of his mind and think on something else.  
  
Jessie. They had already been traveling together a month, but James felt as if he had known her for a very long time. At least, he felt he had hit on every annoyance she could possibly have. Maybe it was just how long they'd been walking, or the diminishing supply of Jigglypuff that was around for eating. Or maybe it was just him. If only he could know what...  
  
His thoughts dwindled off when he noticed a rock jutting up out of the path ahead of him. He usually didn't notice rocks until his toes were wedged under them, but this particular rock he recognized. The top was square and the edges sloped downward into the ground. There should be another rock over there that was an interesting reddish color... And there was the rock with the sharp edge that really hurt when you fell over it, and...  
  
"Oh no..."  
  
Jessie stalked down the path, the same one she had been staring at all week, trying to curb her increasing irritation. If they didn't find a town to stop in before long, she was most likely going to go insane. But not without killing a certain clumsy boy and that "I'm so serious" Meowth first. Deep inside, she knew that she wasn't really being fair to them; they were at least trying to be her friends. Well, James was trying harder than Meowth. He meant well, but...  
  
She sighed as James tripped over the next three rocks they came across in a row. He got up on his own quickly enough, dusting himself off and stuttering that he was fine. At least his awkward spells were better than listening to him whine about being hungry. To tell the truth though, she was feeling like doing a little whining herself. Going without food for even a day was leaving her feeling drained, if only they could find a town soon, then--  
  
"Umm... I don't think... I mean... Are you sure you want to go down this road?" Jessie turned to look behind her at James, who had stopped and was looking around nervously.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"I mean... I'm sure there's a much nicer way to get where we're going... wherever that is... and... well... I think we should try and find it." Jessie blinked a few times, then stared harder at James, now fingering his sword hilt anxiously with a sour expression on his face.  
  
"That doesn't make much sense..." she began slowly. "We've been traveling down this road for days, we're not going to go all the way back now!"  
  
"What's delaying us?" Meowth's voice came from below them. It was peering up at the pair questioningly, that ridiculous cape flapping in the breeze as it waited for an answer.  
  
"James wants us to go back, for some reason," Jessie replied, folding her arms and arching an eyebrow at the man in question. "And I'm just dying to know that reason, of course."  
  
"Most unwise to turn back now," Meowth muttered.  
  
"Sorry... Never mind. After... you?" James offered shakily, gesturing for Jessie to go ahead.  
  
"But aren't you going to tell us--"  
  
I can't exactly... right now."  
  
Jessie just shrugged, pretending to brush off the subject as she took the lead again. If he wouldn't tell, she didn't feel like pushing him now. There was always later to pry it out of him. With the use of excessive force, if necessary. But that subject was lost completely when she saw what was ahead.  
  
A wooden sign beckoned to her from beside the road, like a pool of water shimmering in the middle of a scorching desert. "Look, look! Maybe that will tell us if there's a town ahead!" She raced toward it and skidded to a halt to gaze up at it worshipfully. Then her face fell. It was just one of those "missing" posters.  
  
A little boy in fancy-looking clothes stared at her from the rather well-drawn picture with wide green eyes in a face framed with chin-length purplish... hair...  
  
She slowly turned to look at James, who by this time had caught up with her. His face turned quite an interesting shade when he saw that picture.  
  
"Isn't that you, James?" Meowth asked from below again, breaking the silence that had resulted from Jessie swiveling her head back and forth from the picture to James.  
  
"Yes... it has to be..." she muttered to herself, giving the forelock that hung between his eyes a tug. "Same hair... same face... but younger...." She continued in a normal tone, "So James, mind telling us how it is that you're 'missing'?"  
  
"I... That's... that's my brother. Yeah. He... got carried away by a wild Mankey one day, and--"  
  
"Oh please. You can come up with something better than that. Now, I really do think that is--"  
  
"James!" a voice rang out from somewhere farther up the path, cutting off Jessie's words. "Could that be you? Really you?" The voice belonged to a tall, graying man dressed in some sort of uniform, hurrying toward them with a delighted expression covering his features. He strode right into the middle of the group and directly to James to stare at him with his face only inches away.  
  
"I'm sorry, sir, but you must have the wrong... the wrong..."  
  
"Nonsense, you are James! There's no doubt about that!" Jessie and Meowth shared a surprised look until the cat Monster managed to compose itself again. The man continued speaking excitedly, this time to Jessie.  
  
"Thank you! You must be the one who has brought James back to us! Not to mention my Lord's treasured sword! You can't begin know how much this will mean to my Lord and Lady, both! I'm sure there will be quite a reward for this great favor!"  
  
"Reward, huh..." Jessie glanced at James; he had squeezed his eyes shut and looked as though he was trying not to be sick. Exactly what was going on, she didn't know, but she planned on finding out. If that meant James was going to be uncomfortable for awhile, then so be it.  
  
"Alright... Take me to this Lord...."  
  
Several minutes later found them all standing at the front gates of the hugest house Jessie had ever seen. She had had to support James the entire way there since he seemed incapable of walking without falling over. Now she stared at the size of the place with James still leaning against her; it appeared to be a palace in her eyes.  
  
"Oh, look at those fountains! Those columns are huge! Great landscaping too... And you lived here, James?"  
  
"Oh yes, the young Master did live here... before he ran away," the older man - he had only introduced himself as a servant - offered in reply for James, as he also seemed unable to talk.  
  
"And you ran away from this?!" Jessie exclaimed incredulously. "You must be crazy!"  
  
"This is all great," Meowth commented cynically, "but is this going to take long? My quest to discover a means of reverting to my original form waits for no--"  
  
"Oh, shut up!" Jessie snapped at the little cat, shooting it an evil glare. "There's good money in this, and I'm not about to let it slip out of my hands." From the corner of her eye, she thought she saw James wince at those words, but dismissed it momentarily. He still owed her cooking, she remembered that quite well. What she really needed to figure out how to keep James and get the money. Which might turn out to be no simple task.  
  
"If you are all ready now..." the servant began before walking down the path heading toward the door. Meowth pulled part of it's hood up over the lower half of his face, as if that would hide the fact that it was Monster. The servant hadn't even noticed anything odd about a talking Monster. Jessie figured he had probably been trained to ignore things that were unessential to his tasks - a good way to ensure that servants didn't meddle in their master's personal affairs.  
  
Continuing to help James keep upright with one arm as they walked, she tried not to stare anymore at the carved marble fountains and statues, the heavily decorated iron arches, or the numerous varieties of sweet-smelling roses that bordered the path. She didn't need to appear the perfect image of a gawking country girl to anyone who might be watching; looking self-assured and confident almost always came in handy.  
  
After several more long minutes of walking down the ridiculously long path, they finally reached the huge double doors of the house. The servant ushered them inside, then left them to wait in a large room with beautifully carved staircases running up either side. Meowth tapped it's foot impatiently while Jessie turned to James, now miraculously standing unsupported.  
  
"You know something, James... I've been thinking. If you're the son of this Lord - am I correct in assuming that? - then wouldn't that make you the heir to whatever he's lord over?"  
  
"I guess..." James sighed in reply, not sounding terribly thrilled about the prospect.  
  
"Of course he is," a deep and commanding voice intoned from above their heads, "and we are so happy to see that he has finally come to his senses." The voice belonged to an elegantly dressed man standing at the top of the left-hand flight of stairs, a woman in a flowing dress holding his arm. As they descended the stairs, the man continued speaking.  
  
"I am Lord Gabriev, and all the land for twenty miles around is under my rule. Once I am gone, my son will take my place. It is only expected, of course." By this time, the pair had reached ground level and were standing in front of the travel worn trio. Lady Gabriev spoke next, a smile on her face that didn't quite touch her eyes.  
  
"It is so good to see you again, my son, after we had thought for so long that you had simply vanished." James just nodded, twisting his hands together nervously and mumbling something Jessie couldn't quite hear. "Speak up, James. Mumbling isn't proper," his mother continued, this time a touch more sharply.  
  
"I'm sorry, Mother. I.. I am happy to see you, too."  
  
Jessie very nearly laughed. She had been quite sure that had been a lie. Seeing what his parents were like, she was beginning to understand why he had run away and didn't seem to want anything to do with his last name.  
  
"At least you had the sense to bring the sword back as well," Lord Gabriev was saying now; Jessie thought he sounded angry, yet his face was just as composed as it had been before. She could see James flinch visibly at his words from the edge of her vision, confirming her suspicion. "Perhaps it is best if you are relieved of it now," the Lord continued, a mere snap of his fingers bringing a servant scuttling forward, seemingly out of nowhere, to unfasten the sword - sword belt, sheath, and all - from around James' waist.  
  
"And, my dear, those clothes are definitely not proper for a young lord. Why don't you change into something more suitable now. I am afraid that your father and I need to have a long talk with you." This time, the Lady snapped her fingers, and two servants appeared to take James' arms on either side, leading him up the right-hand staircase. From the look on his face, you would have thought he was being dragged off to his own execution. Lord Gabriev waited until he was out of sight before speaking to Jessie.  
  
"And you, young lady... We understand from one of our servants that you are the one who has brought our only heir back to us. For that, we owe you a tremendous debt of gratitude."  
  
"Well, I guess you could say that," Jessie replied smoothly, "but if you'd care to show a little of that gratitude by--"  
  
"We will talk of gold later, after we have dealt with our son. For now, why don't you wait out in the garden? We will send James out to fetch you when we are ready to talk again."  
  
"Oh man, I wasn't sure I could have lasted much longer in there... Too stuffy."  
  
"Yes, but I can't believe you actually asked them for money."  
  
"Well, I didn't get that far. But I'm sure they could just tell I'm an enterprising kind of girl."  
  
"I'm sure."  
  
Jessie dangled her feet off the edge of the fountain she had seated herself on, kicking them idly as she wondered exactly how much the reward would be. Meowth leaned against a tree nearby, pretending total disinterest in anything around it. But Jessie enjoyed herself looking at the flowers and statues in the garden. The air here was pleasantly cool as well, and she was starting to feel satisfied again. Gaining more gold was definitely a factor in that satisfaction, and--  
  
"He's your friend, isn't he?"  
  
"Say... say what?"  
  
"He's your friend, right?"  
  
"Who?"  
  
"James."  
  
"I..." Jessie replied to Meowth's sudden question slowly. "I suppose... What does that have to do with anything?"  
  
"I believe that you humans have a certain definition of friendship. I also seem to recall that it involves making that person happy," Meowth continued, still managing to somehow sound as though it didn't care at all about what it was saying.  
  
Jessie stared at it. It was sneaky, that was for sure. But it was right, too. It made her realize that perhaps what she was doing right now was wrong.  
  
Angrily, she jumped down and kicked the side of the fountain, hopping up and down then on her other foot. "You just talked me out of a lot of money, cat... You're lucky, that could have been you," she added, pointing at the fountain where she had kicked it.  
  
"I'm sure," Meowth answered casually, almost smiling before pulling it's hood up over it's mouth again and turning away slightly. Jessie shook her head.  
  
"You know what your problem is? You're too damn dramatic."  
  
"Thank you."  
  
Just then, James came into view, looking every inch the young nobleman. His dark blue coat and pants were trimmed with silver thread, and he was actually wearing a piece of jewelry - a large silver and blue, oval-shaped ring, what Jessie supposed represented the family crest. He also looked to have been bathed quite completely, his hair only partly dry, the wet strands curling a bit against his face.  
  
He also was disturbingly handsome, so much so that Jessie just stared in awe for some time before she managed to regain her composure. Like a tall, slender prince, right out of a fairy tale...  
  
She scolded herself internally for noticing his appearance so fully, then put a broad smile on her face that she hoped would give no hint of what she had been thinking. "So, James, what's up?"  
  
"Mother and Father are ready to see you now," he said stiffly, already turning to go.  
  
"Hey, wait a minute! We can be out the back gate in two minutes! So what's this 'come on, we gotta listen to mommy and daddy' junk?" Jessie exclaimed cheerfully, clapping him on the back. He just stared at the ground.  
  
"I was sent to bring you," he mumbled, starting to turn around again.  
  
"Oh no you don't!" Jessie grabbed him by the arm and forced him to sit where she had at the edge of the fountain. "Alright James, there's nothing else for me to do... except admit that I was wrong to do this to you. I was only thinking of the reward instead of how you would... would feel. And you're my friend, and I... I want you to be happy."  
  
She knew her cheeks were flaming red by the time she finished, not only from her words, but also from the way he was leaning forward intently, his big eyes alight on her face. "Jessie... I thought you were going to abandon me, but I guess I was wrong... You really are my friend," he concluded with huge misty eyes.  
  
"Well... yeah. And you still owe me 11 months of cooking."  
  
"Heh... right..."  
  
"Guess we're outta here then!" Jessie announced, raising a fist in the air.  
  
"Finally," Meowth grumbled, stretching out it's legs.  
  
"Not exactly..." James sighed. "We can't just... sneak out. Not the back way, anyhow. This may sound strange, but there really are servants everywhere. They'd spot us in a minute, and then there goes our escape. For now... I guess we just have to go back and talk to my parents, and then we just... wing it."  
  
"Wing it? How can we just 'wing it' when your parents are so dead set against you leaving?"  
  
"Umm... just... improvise?"  
  
Jessie sighed. "This is turning into such a long day..."  
  
Improvise, improvise... Hell, I might as well just grab him and run, was the only thing Jessie could think when they were standing before the "illustrious" Lord and Lady once more.  
  
"For your service to us in returning our son, we have decided to present you with this reward of 1,000 in gold. Now, if you would be so kind, you and your... pet... may leave." Lord Gabriev was doing a better job at sounding indifferent than even Meowth could. Jessie stepped forward, pushing James slightly behind her and licking her lips nervously.  
  
"Well, umm... That's... that's not enough money! Come on, do you even know how much trouble this boy was to catch? And then to put up with afterward?" James was scowling openly behind her back at this point, but of course she didn't notice.  
  
"I suppose you... may be right," Lord Gabriev replied, actually seeming to be a bit bewildered by Jessie's act. "We will make it 5,000 then."  
  
"I... won't go any lower than 10,000."  
  
"10,000 it is then."  
  
Jessie's eyes bulged. Dammit... am I sure he's my friend? "Oh... well... heh... you see... Actually, now I don't even want to get rid of him, soooo.... Be seein' ya!" She grabbed James' arm and broke into a run, but stopped when she noticed that he had been right. There were servants everywhere, as though summoned by some unseen signal - on the stairs, in front of the door, everywhere. And closing in.  
  
"I'm afraid that you will not be going anywhere," Lady Gabriev said shrilly, her eyes flashing angrily.  
  
Jessie grinned, then winked at her. "Oh... My Arbok seems to think otherwise." Faster than anyone could even blink, she had the Monster Orb in her hand and was tossing it into the air. "Come forth, Arbok! Use your Glare on these idiots!"  
  
Most people in the room shielded their eyes from the blinding flash as the snake Monster appeared. Naturally, not knowing much about Monsters in general, they then stared right at it's glowing red eyes. Which of course froze everyone in the room tightly, as though held by invisible bonds. Except for those who had the sense not to look, namely Jessie, James, and Meowth.  
  
"Now let's get out of here!" Jessie yelled, pointing at the tall doors.  
  
"Wait! The sword! I have to go back and get it!" James cried frantically while watching his parents like they were going to start moving any second.  
  
"I guess... We have a few minutes before the Glare wears off. But I'm going with you, and Meowth, you stay here and watch everyone."  
  
"And what are they supposed to do besides stand there like statues?"  
  
"Just do it!" she called back over her should at the Monster, turning to run after James, who was already racing up the stairs two at a time. She followed him up to the first broad hallway they came to, where he stopped before a display of swords mounted on the wall. He reached up to jerk the Summon Sword down from it's place in the middle.  
  
"Stupid place to put a sword... on the wall," Jessie could hear him mutter. Looking at his face, it was obvious that this angered him somehow. In his haste to turn toward her, he accidentally bumped against her, causing their faces to brush together for the briefest moment. The angry creases of his face smoothed out as he looked at her, wide-eyed.  
  
Roses. That was what he smelled of. Stupid idiot girl. Thinking about things like that at a time like this. "Let's go," she snapped a little more sharply than she would have liked, tugging him by the arm. He shook his head quickly and hurried into a room nearby; he reappeared again almost immediately with a bag.  
  
"My clothes," he explained. They wasted no more time talking while running back to collect Meowth, then at James' suggestion, they headed out the back way, Arbok stopping anyone who got in their path until they were running off down the road and not looking back.  
  
"Where'd Meowth go off to, anyway?"  
  
"Oh, it said something about 'practicing', then it went off somewhere."  
  
"Practicing, huh... Practicing being obnoxiously dramatic, no doubt," Jessie said with a yawn, settling herself down a little more comfortably into the thick grass. James lay several feet away, arms behind his head and staring at the sky, now dressed in his dusty blue pants and shirt, his sword equipment, sword, and armor laying close beside him. The fancy clothes had been stuffed into the bag; Jessie had managed to convince him to keep them without seeming to really care.  
  
She sneaked a glance at him now through half closed eyes. He was still handsome, but in a slightly different way. Stupid. Stop thinking about that.  
  
"I can't believe I didn't notice where we were heading before..." he sighed suddenly, catching Jessie off guard. "I've tried to run away from home so many times... I tripped over all those rocks every single time. Why I didn't notice it before then... I don't know."  
  
"I can see why you didn't want me to know about all that stuff..."  
  
"Yeah," was all he said in reply.  
  
"Tell me... Why do you... why did you..."  
  
"Why don't I want to be a lord someday? Why don't I want to be rich and powerful? In other words, why am I crazy?" He laughed a little, not as though he was really amused. "It's just not what I want. I guess I'm just expected to be what my parents want... But I don't want that. I don't want someone planning out my life for me."  
  
"So what... what do you want?"  
  
"I just want to be a swordsman. That's something I do enjoy. Most of all, I just want someone to take care of, to kind of protect and watch over, almost like a bodyguard, but... That's kind of my life's dream. Really though, you don't want to hear about this," he laughed again, this time in an embarrassed way.  
  
"And what's the whole thing behind the sword?" Jessie asked for a quick change of subject. It embarrassed her too, in some way.  
  
"It's belonged to my family for years, like I said... It's just that no one has used it for a very long time. It was used before - obviously, because of the two magics already in it - but now it's just an ornament on a wall. Pointless. Swords are meant to be used, in my opinion. Not rusting on a wall..."  
  
"I agree," Jessie nodded, hoping he would catch the hint. No more on that subject for now. But before she could stop herself, she blurted out, "And I hope you find someone to take care of someday. And I hope it's not me," she joked.  
  
"I know. Then I'd have to have a bodyguard to protect myself from you."  
  
"And what does that mean?"  
  
"You're the meanest girl I ever met," he grinned widely.  
  
"Why you little..." Yet as she chased him around with the intent of doing serious bodily harm, she found herself smiling.  
  
Maybe someday... years from now.


End file.
